These Marsupials Are Sexing Themselves To Death

Black-Tailed Antechinus

Gary Cranitch/Queensland Museum

Oh, wow, look at this cute little mouse thing. I bet it lives a long and fruitful marsupial life. Ha, no. Kidding! It probably dies from bumping uglies too hard.

Australian scientists recently discovered these little creatures, a black-tailed variety of antechinus, in New South Wales and Queensland. The genus is famed for mating with all of its might, then falling over dead. How dead? Let _T__he Telegraph _explain, graphically:

The research found that the male mated "competitively" to try to promote their own genes and that the "frantic" breeding caused infections, internal bleeding, a disintegration of body tissue and eventually death.

At about 11 months old, the marsupials do it alllll night (literally, 12 to 14 hours) and most of the males die before the resulting offspring are born. Until about a year ago, researchers assumed they died from selflessly starving during the winter, saving food for the kids. But, nope, it's definitely because of crazy sex.